Like No One's Watching
by Lillith Cantrell
Summary: Garnet Cromwell is the only girl who seems to resist Fred Weasley's charm...but in her emotional weakness, she is faced with a choice to shove away the only boy she really hates, or let him in and take a chance...
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One.**

Disclaimer: _I only own Garnet, Rachael and Juliana; all other references (including Fred and other characters) are the sole property of JK Rowling._

The common room was almost empty, giving over to the peace of Ravenclaw tower. A dark-haired girl (about sixteen by the look of her) wandered down from the girls' dormitories, running a hand through her hair and sighing. She took a seat in one of the armchairs by the dying fire and rubbed her temples.

"God, I wish I could sleep," The girl said aloud to the fire-warmed air. In all her years at Hogwarts, she'd never had this much trouble sleeping. Truthfully, she probably should've been awake anyway to write a Transfiguration essay, but that was due in three days. She sighed again, checking her watch for the time. It was almost four o'clock in the morning. She only had about three more hours to struggle with her mind to sleep before she had to get up and get ready for yet another long day. She slid her wand out of her night-robe, wondering if she knew anything that could help her get to sleep.

"I want to sleep," She told the wand, not really expecting it to do anything. She closed her eyes and leaned back against the chair, and comfort overtook her. She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, falling back into the comfortable black blanket of sleep.

"Garnet!" Someone yelled, and the girl woke with a start, confused. There were three girls around her, all looking like they had already taken a shower. Garnet leapt up from the chair she had fallen asleep in, and rushed up to the dormitories to take a shower.

"I wonder why she was asleep down here?" One of the girls said as they walked to the door to get out into the hall over the sounds of Garnet rushing up the stairs.

"I have no idea," A second one replied, and they waited for the third, who shook her head.

"I'll wait for Garnet," She said, and turned to walk back upstairs. When she got there, steam had infested the area around the bathroom and she shook her blonde head.

"Garnet?" She called, knocking softly on the bathroom door.

"In the shower!" Garnet replied, shouting through the steam and door. The blonde girl smiled.

"I know, it's Juliana, I came to wait for you," Juliana said. Garnet said some reply and shut off the water in the shower. She emerged several minutes later with her robes over one arm and one hand reaching up to scrunch her damp hair.

"Seriously, who serves breakfast at eight A.M? It's insanity," She said, walking past Juliana to grab makeup out of her bedside drawer.

"Well, you might want to hurry so you get some insanity," Juliana told Garnet, who smiled and leaned closer to the mirror to put on mascara. She inspected her eyes then walked back to her bed, throwing her robes on and turning to Juliana.

"Let's go. Maybe you'll see Fred!" She said, leading Garnet down the stairs.

"He's so annoying," Garnet said, lifting her robes so she didn't trip on them as she went down the stairs.

"He likes you," Juliana said, and Garnet slammed the door behind them, much to the annoyance of the talking doorknob, which she ignored.

"He's just dumb," Garnet said, and that ended the conversation until they arrived in the Great Hall, where she most certainly did see Fred Weasley.

"Go in front of me, maybe he won't see us," Garnet hissed, and kept close to Juliana. She didn't have to bend down, as Garnet was among the shortest sixth-year girls.

"Garnet Cromwell!" A loud booming voice carried over the chatter and tinkle of silverware. Juliana and Garnet stopped in their tracks and Garnet sighed.

"Damnit," She whispered, before turning to face the red-head who had materialized before her, so unwitting of her reluctance to speak with him.

"You're late to breakfast this morning! I feared I would not see you," Fred said, and Garnet was fully aware of his twin George, their little brother Ron and his friends Hermione Granger and Harry Potter staring in their direction. Garnet refrained from rolling her eyes with great difficulty and forced herself to look up at Fred.

"You're annoying," She said, and turned away. To her surprise, Fred reached out and caught her arm. She turned slowly to face him, and noticed his visage had lost the look of glee and arrogance.

"Do you have a break anytime today?" He asked. Garnet rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

"After lunch, but I was planning on using it to catch up on work. Why?" She asked resignedly. Fred smiled.

"Meet me in the Entrance Hall," Fred said, winked, and then left. Garnet watched him go, with her arms still crossed and a frown on her face.

"Are you going to?" Juliana asked, staring after Fred like Garnet was. Garnet shrugged, turning towards the Ravenclaw table.

"Probably not," She said, and sat down in a vacant seat. Yawning, she grabbed a piece of toast and spread marmalade on it. She also grabbed a mug and filled it with hot coco.

"If Fred Weasley threw himself at me, I'd take him up on it," Another girl from Garnet's dormitory, Rachael, told her. Garnet set down her toast and looked very carefully at Rachael.

"Well, that's the difference between you and I, isn't it?" She said. Rachael looked taken aback and Garnet just shook her head. She grabbed her toast and walked out of the Great Hall, but not before Fred could spot her. "Garnet! Where are--?" He said, but Garnet just walked right by him, annoyed at everything. She walked blindly to the staircase and up, until she emerged onto the third floor and found a comfortable corner to eat her toast. She yawned and sighed, leaning her head back against the hard stone wall. _I really need to start sleeping _she thought to herself, and finished off her toast. She got up, dusted off her robes, and set off for Charms.

She entered the class and sat down in her assigned seat, her head buzzing with a haze of tiredness. She continued that way throughout the rest of Charms and Transfiguration. McGonagall had to repeat her questions to Garnet several times in Transfiguration, which won her an after class talking to.

"Garnet Cromwell, this isn't like you," McGonagall said, peering at Garnet over her glasses. Garnet sighed and nodded.

"I'm sorry Professor, I just haven't been sleeping well," She said, and McGonagall looked up at her again.

"See that it is fixed. Now, off to lunch with you," She said, dismissing Garnet. Garnet nodded and set off for lunch, her head feeling heavy on her shoulders. She sat down next to Juliana at the Ravenclaw table and laid her head upon her arms, not even bothering to pick up any food.

"Did you decide yet?" Juliana asked, taking a swing of pumpkin juice. Garnet shook her head, not even bothering to look up.

"He probably wants me to test out some of their stupid 'products' for them," Garnet replied from the depths of her arms. Juliana laughed.

"You're in a good mood," She said.

"Shut up," Garnet retorted, and got up.

"Where are you going?" Juliana asked.

"To take a nap," Garnet replied, and walked away from the table. She cut through the Entrance Hall and heard Fred call her name. She stopped and turned, unsure of if she would walk over to him or continue on to her wonderfully comfortable bed. He watched her eagerly and she closed her eyes for a moment, and then opened them.

"Come here," Fred coaxed, and Garnet looked at him quizzically. She opened her mouth to reply…


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two.  
**_Author Note: I only own Juliana and Garnet. But we knew that. Duh._

…but thought the better of it, and closed her mouth. She took a couple halting steps towards Fred, and he walked forward to meet her.

"Come with me," He said, offering his hand. Garnet simply looked at him and he lowered his hand, but led her out of the Entrance Hall and into the early October sunshine. They sat side-by-side on the grand, sweeping steps before the great doors to Hogwarts. They were quiet for a few moments, and Garnet pulled her knees up to her chest, resting her head on them. She could feel Fred's eyes on her, so she turned her head towards him and looked right back.

"What's wrong?" He asked, and Garnet just shook her head.

"I hardly sleep…I'm just tired," She replied, and turned away again, closing her eyes and letting the October sunshine warm her dark hair.

"Is there any reason you don't sleep?" Fred inquired. Garnet shook her head. She was so tired, she just wanted to lean against something and fall asleep in this comfortable sunshine.

"I wish there was a reason, so I could fix it," Garnet said after a few moments. She heard Fred make a noise of agreement, and silence fell between them once again. They sat there for a while, and unbeknownst to Garnet, Fred had come closer to her. Instinctively, she leaned onto him and kept her eyes closed, hating herself for letting him in even that far. But at the same time, she couldn't help but be thankful that he was there to lean on.

The bell signaling the end of the period after lunch clanged alarmingly loud overhead and Garnet woke with a start, and Fred smiled at her.

"Time for class," He said, and got up. He helped Garnet to her feet and handing her the pack she carried her books in. She forced a smile at him and walked into the Entrance Hall, wanting to get away from him. Luckily, Juliana was headed towards Potions, as Garnet was, and she grabbed her arm.

"What happened?" Juliana asked, as they walked quickly towards the dungeons. Garnet looked behind her to make sure Fred was nowhere around, and groaned.

"I fell asleep on him!" She hissed, and Juliana drew back with a gasp.

"You like him!" She said, with a hand over her mouth. They sat down at their table in the dim, cool dungeon and Garnet slammed her bag down on the table.

"I do not!" She said, pulling out her Potions book and sitting with her arms crossed. Juliana was about to reply but was cutoff by Professor Snape entering the room. He swept to the front of the class and flicked his wand at the board.

"Due at the end of class," He said carelessly. Garnet pulled her cauldron towards her and began taking the necessary ingredients and equipment out of her bag. She lit a fire underneath her cauldron with such force it rose up on the sides of the cauldron, and was immediately seen by Snape, who glided over.

"Miss Cromwell, kindly read me the first line of the instructions on the board," He said softly. Garnet, with great effort, did not roll her eyes and squinted through the steam that was rising from the cauldrons in the room.

"Light a small fire underneath the cauldron," She read dully, and Snape nodded.

"Now explain to me why you have created a bonfire underneath your cauldron," He said, staring down his hooked nose at her. Out of pure annoyance, Garnet flicked her wand at her cauldron and the fire went down to the appropriate size.

"Five points from Ravenclaw," He said loudly, and the three Slytherins in the class laughed. Garnet rolled her eyes and watched him stalk away.

"I hate him," She said to Juliana, and the other girl nodded.

"Today has just been terrible. And, I still have so much homework to do," Garnet said as she added herbs to the boiling potion in her cauldron. Snape swept by her again, and she longed to take the heavy cauldron and throw it at him, knocking out his knees and watching him fall to Earth like the great, stupid bat he was.

"Did Fred say anything of interest to you?" Juliana asked. Garnet just shook her head.

"He just asked why I hadn't been sleeping," She replied, measuring out a small amount of crushed spider legs and adding them to her potion. "What is this potion even called?" Juliana shrugged.

"I can't see the title from here," She said. Garnet sat back and let her potion simmer, and let her mind wander back to the time she had spent with Fred on the steps. She didn't like him, she knew that. IT freaked her out that she had fallen asleep on him. Even more so that he hadn't moved for however long she had slept. She wondered if he would try to get her alone again, or if he would ignore her. Part of her, the larger part, hoped that he would ignore her so she wouldn't have to explain why she had just walked away from him. The other part hoped he would try to get her alone again, so maybe she could have the feeling of that comfort back. She figured that she would find out at dinner, which would be occurring in half an hour. She checked her potion and realized it was done. She took a small amount and put it in a vial to bring to Snape for grading. She labeled it with her name and put it with the rest of the vials on the desk. She quickly scribbled down the homework assignment, then began to clean up.

As she washed her hands in the ice cold water that ran in the sink, she began to get nervous about dinner. She knew she was stupid for even thinking about it, but she couldn't help but wonder. She walked back over to the table and packed up her things, waiting for Juliana. When she was finally ready to go, Garnet followed her out of the dungeon, among the last to leave. They walked slowly in the usual near-traffic jam of students, trying to guess what was for dinner by the smell. Garnet accompanied Juliana to their table and looked across to the Gryffindor table. To her great surprise, she didn't see Fred, nor George. Slightly disappointed, Garnet looked down at her plate, unaware that a certain redhead was creeping up behind her.


End file.
